Fox and Feline, Reunited
by fullmoonsinner
Summary: Sequel to "I kinda sorta turned her into a three year old"; You know the bittersweet tale. Now, Nekozawa has to choose between taking the risk and allowing himself to be truly happy with his dear friend, or hide in his comfort zone- loneliness, where nothing else can harm him.. but just when he thinks he has it all figured out, something sends his hopes crashing down on him.
1. Fragile

**HELLO MY BEAUTIFUL FRIENDS! IT'S BEEN TOO LONG! I got my first haircut in about three years (my hair was a little longer than half-way down my back, and now a couple inches below my shoulder) and it's in layers too! Probably the most amazing change is I got to start playing the ukulele! :D was that gloating? I feel like it was gloating... And summer started for me! Too bad I have to read "The Life of Pi" for English next year.. please help me... I have a feeling i'm not going to understand a thing about this book.  
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**So, at last, I present to you; the very first chapter of "Fox and Feline, Reunited."  
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><p>Haruhi worked quickly, sorting through chests full of stuffed animals. "Damn it...where is it?" she cursed, pulling out animal after animal. It had been three weeks since she had drawn Dara-chan, and yet somehow something always got in the way of her finding him. Now was her first and probably only chance to find him, and she wasn't taking the risk of loosing probably the one thing that could help her figure out what was going on with her.<p>

Suddenly, she saw a bit of orangey-tan fabric. Carefully, she pushed away the toys that were laying ontop of it, at took hold of it. Haruhi's heart skipped a beat, she was shaking. She tucked the puppet safely into her bag, making sure it wasn't getting squished, and rapidly dumped all of the stuffed animals back into the chest, just so that nobody would create a scene when they walked in and saw that the place was a mess. She walked out of the room, looked both ways and quietly shut the door.

"Ha-..Fujioka-san?" she heard a voice ask. She quickly turned around and froze.

"Sempai? Um.. how can I help you?" she asked, looking down.

"No..no it's nothing.. It's just that.. are you alright? You seem... anxious." he said, also not making eye contact with her. The two of them stood there, awkwardly, for a few moments. "Fujioka-san, I-"

"Sempai, I really have to go." she said quickly, her bangs covering her eyes. She bowed to him, "Goodbye." and left without another word. Lately Nekozawa had developed a habit of following Haruhi every now and then. He knew that it was wrong, but he couldn't help it.

"Beelzenef, do you think that she..?"

{I think she did..}

He sighed, "Why didn't I just use the spell and herb to make her grow older in the first place?"

{Only you know the answer to that.}

Nekozawa looked down, "We're leaving. She's not coming back."

"Speak." Haruhi commanded. Dara-chan was laid out on the table, his pointed face drooping to the side from gravity. "Speak, now," she repeated. No answer. Haruhi held him up in he sunlight, and said loudly "Rise, my friend. Speak those words you have not uttered in years." Now she was getting no response, _and_ she felt like a fool.

She sighed and put her head on the table. "It's no use.. Think, Haruhi, think!" she said, lightly tapping her head with her fist. She heard the slight clicking of the doorknob being unlocked, and didn't bother to turn her head. "Hi, Otou-san." she mumbled.

"Hi, sweetie. Is everything alright?" Ranka asked, putting his purse on the table and sitting next to her. He stroked her head soothingly.

"Yeah, everything's fine. Just a little tired."

"Okay, well I'm going to the bath now, so just take some rest. Are you hungry at all?"

"No, it's okay." she said. Ranka hesitantly walked into the bathroom.

Haruhi groaned and banged her head on the table slowly and quietly so he wouldn't hear her. "Okay, so you got him from the chest in the Costume and Prop room.. then what? What happened after that?" she asked herself, massaging her temples. "Wait... Sempai was... That's it! I'll just ask Sempai to fix Dara-chan!" she cried, getting up. She jumped back a bit when she bumped the table.

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><p>When Nekozawa returned home, he threw himself on his bed and let out a low grumble.<p>

{Mmfhrshhhhnn.}

"Oh, shut it." Nekozawa told him.

{Shrngfrrghw.}

"I said, quiet."

{HRRRHMMMFRGGSSHHMH!}

"Oh, sorry." Nekozawa said, flipping his hand over. Beelzenef quietly cursed him. "Three weeks, huh? How do you think Haruhi's taking all of this?"

{I think that she's a complete wreck. You saw how she ran out of the drama room. The poor child is probably miserable.}

"That makes me feel so much better." Nekozawa grumbled sarcastically. "Tch, I still can't believe she walked away from me like that. She's could've at least-"

{Umehito, your emotions are getting the better of you again. Haruhi's better off not having to deal with this.}

"How? Just _how_ is she better off, exactly?" Nekozawa hissed. "She obviously remembers everything, and you said it yourself that she's a complete, miserable wreck."

{Umehito,} Beelzenef said dissaproovingly. {Leave her be.}

"What do you know?" Nekozawa said "You-" he stopped there remembering a similar conversation from before, _"You don't get it. You're a puppet, you have a completely** different** perspective on life." _"I'm done with this conversation." he sighed. If Beeelzenef wasn't a puppet, he would have raised his eyebrow.

{Think about what I've said. I'm your friend, Umehito. Remember that.} Nekozawa nodded and gently took the puppet off of his hand, and layed him neatly on the top of his bedside table. He thought of the pro's and con's of each decision.

Approach Haruhi about incident -risk changing lives forever (have a human being to talk to about it)

Don't approach Haruhi about incident- risk feeling like pathetic person for rest of life (live rest of life like normal)

Then Nekozawa thought of another option, probably the most risky one.

**_Erase both of our memories of the incident - loose the memories of the most fun you've ever had (no need to live with that constant awkwardness and possible pain for the rest of your life)_**

He could help but ask himself, "What if something goes wrong again?

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><p><strong>Sooooo whattd'ya think? I'm thinking about making this story probably a few chapters longer than its predecessor. Oh yes, I learned a big word from a vocaloid song :D I have a favor to ask of you all. On July third, I want you all to eat Fruity Pebbles, no matter what. You will draw the best unicorn you can (even if it's a stick figure unicorn) and you will put that picture onto your fridge with magnets (and leave it there forever). You will also wear a pair of fairy wings and go around causing a ruckus, because that's what pixies do. Then, when nobody else expects it, you will holler at the top of your lungs;<strong>

**"CUMPLEAÑOS FELIZ! CUMPLEAÑOS FELIZ! CUMPLEAÑOS FELIZ A FULLMOONSINNER! CUMPLEAÑOS FELIZ!"**

**You may Google that if you wish.  
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	2. Opportune

**Oh my god you guiz the absolute worst thing for a writer is when the have the beginning and the end but you have nothing to put inbetween... And I'm just talking about the single chapters.  
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**But srsly guiz, I missed you all. **

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><p>{Umehito. <em>Think<em> for a moment, about what you are trying to do.}

"No. I've thought for weeks on end about this. No more thinking for me, mister. No siree."

{Please, hear me out.}

"No, hear ME out. I've been living with this...this…this thing for ages, why should I let myself go on with the grief? The sooner the three of us forget about all of this, the better."

{Three? You are not soaking me with that vile concoction. I'd sooner go **_dormant_** before you give me any of that.}

"Beelzenef, you're over-reacting-"

{No I'm not, Umehito! Face it, potions are not your strong-point. Dealing with having a strong connection with someone else- who is human- is not something you're used to. Why can't you just listen to me for once? Maybe, _just maybe_, Having Haruhi in your life would be good for you? What's wrong with having someone in your life that is precious to you?}

"What about ..her?.. What she feels.. " Nekozawa said weakly. He straightened up. "Stop trying to change my mind. I'll give this to Haruhi, and then I'll take it once I'm sure that it worked for her."

{If I had limbs, I would hit you.}

Nekozawa read over the instructions once more. _This potion has no effect on recipients who have not been "included". _

"I only put a lock of Haruhi's hair in here... should only have an effect on her.." Acquiring the lock of hair from Haruhi was a simple task. All he had to do was bid on the Host Club website for the extensive set of locks of hair from each host, and viola. He bribed one of his classmates to pick it up from Renge, and threw away every single one except for Haruhis'.

{Umehito.. I have a question.}

"What?"

{Earlier you told me… but I want to know now. Why didn't you just use the herb to make her grow old again? I mean.. It would've had less complications… And you could've used the memory tablets to-}

"I'm not having this conversation."

{You always screw up up when it comes to spells that have been written for you, so- Oh my god.}

"What?"

{Oh no, Umehito, you pathetic little bastard.}

"What? What is it?"

{You didn't. I can't believe it, you are so-}

Nekozawa took the puppet off of his hand. "That's enough out of you." He said, he wriggled his fingers a bit, then took the dropper from his neat little line of tools for potion making. From the small boiling pot, he squeezed in the liquid, then dropped it into the bento box he had on the table. He squeezed out the contents of the dropper on each item of food, taking in more from the cup and repeating the process. The bento box consisted of mainly of spicy tuna, and a few fresh and yummy-looking strawberries. In one of the other small compartments, he folded a small piece of paper, a 100% off coupon for the most deluxe ramen stand in town. Haruhi loved ramen from the stands. Or, at least the younger Haruhi did.

He placed a pair of chopsticks in the box and put a lid on it, then tied it up very elegantly with a light purple cloth. He glanced at his watch, 12:30. Just in time.

"No lunch today, huh?" Hikaru said, poking Haruhi's face.

"I could've sworn I had it in the classroom.." she said, slouching in the chair.

"Aww," Kaoru said, "Here, have my B pasta." he handed over the bowl of the charmingly decorated pasta, the sauce spread over neither too thick or too thin.

"You're too nice.. although.. I _do_ love food from the cafeteria here.."

"Really? We think it's quite bland." The two twins said blatantly. Haruhi stared at the pasta questioningly.

"It's almost a shame to eat something so exquisite.." Haruhi said. She took the fork that Kaoru handed her, "Itadakimasu." she said.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you, but Fujioka-sama?" said a man that was dressed in a classy and simple tux. Haruhi looked up, to see him holding a bento box with a note attached to it. "This is for you." He said, placing it gently onto the table.

Haruhi stared at the bento box. "Should I open it?"

"Haruhi-kun, could it be that you have a secret admirer?" a girl from the host club asked.

"Well, I don't think it's anything like that, but it would be rude not to open it." Haruhi told her. Haruhi untied the wrapping gently, gazing in the contents. Everyone gasped. "It couldn't possibly be..."

"Haruhi, I think it is." Hikaru said.

"Spicy tuna?" she cried. There was another peice of paper in the third compartment, and Haruhi unfolded that one. "I.. I haven't wanted to eat ramen in so long.. and this is the best stand in town.. " All of the customers in the background couldn't help but let out squeals of delight, watching their wittle Haruhi get all flustered from a coupon.

"Excuse me, sir, who is this from?" Haruhi asked the man, but he was gone. She looked at the note that fell from the knot in the cloth, and unfolded it.

_You told me a long time ago that you loved to eat ramen, before everything.. "changed" in your family. Now, I hear that you've made it your mission to eat spicy tuna. Please the present, huh? Anyway, sorry about all of the trouble I've caused you these past few weeks. I hope that this will make up for it. Enjoy the bento, Fujioka Haruhi-san.  
><em>

_- Nekozawa Umehito _

"Who's it from?" Hikaru said. He was munching on one of the strawberries that he sneaked from the box.

"Hey, you could've asked!" Haruhi said.

"Too late now." he said, swallowing the fruit.

Haruhi sighed "It's from Nekozawa-sempai... it's weird though... I don't ever remember telling him-"

"It's WHAT?" Hikaru screeched. He nearly started choking, trying to self pump the strawberry out of his stomach, coughing and gagging.

"Hikaru! Hikaru, breathe!" Haruhi and Kaoru cried, rushing to his side. "What's wrong?"

"That..that... effing... demon... trying to drug.. Haruhi..."

"What?"

"Don't you get it? A free bento, the nice help to hand it to you, the coupon? The kid just wants some- oh god, the effing thought."

"Hikaru.."

"Ugh, my head hurts now. I'm going to go splash water on my face."

"I'll go with you." Kaoru said, helping his brother up. The two of them walked out of the cafeteria without another word. Haruhi looked off at them sadly, she kind of felt like it was her fault. She stormed out of the cafeteria as well, gripping the note tightly.

Again. Those painful bursts of flashing images in her head. They keep coming back. There's there people, so much bigger than her. Smiling, and carrying her in the air, holding her hand and walking, letting her grip onto their backs. They were all so familiar though.

But Nekozawa was there... She knew that for sure. This was the final straw, she was going to get some answers out of that boy. He had been avoiding her for too long during her hunt to get Dara-chan to speak again. But goodness gracious, he sure was bipolar. She had finally found the black magic clubroom, and banged on the door harshly.

"Sempai, please open the door!" she cried, continually banging on it.

"Ha-... Fujioka-san?" She heard him say. She turned to see a shaking and slightly nervous Nekozawa, without his puppet." can I help you?"

"You sent me that bento, right?"

"Oh.. er... I that... it didn't work..."

"What didn't work, exactly?"

"Nothing, nothing. Please excuse me, I've got to go in for something." He said, trying to shoo her out of the way. "Would you like to come in?"

"Sempai, please tell me what's going on."

"What?"

"Sempai, I _know _that you-" there was another flash in her mind,

_"And they all lived happily ever after. The end." said the boy with the dark hood. He said something else, but Haruhi was drifting off to sleep, and she couldn't make out what he was saying. She remembered cuddling with Dara-chan... then nothing. _

"I know...I know that you.. that you... you.. and me..."

"What?"

"You and Beelzenef.. and me.. and Dara-cha-"

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about." He said. His heart started to beat extremely fast, and the kids that were already in the hallway were beginning to stare. " Now, if you'll excuse me."

"No."

"Then, I'll leave."

"No, that's not the point, I-"

Meanwhile, Hikaru and Kaoru had made their way towards Nekozawa's club room. The people in the cafeteria told them that Haruhi had stormed off in a raging mass of fury, so naturally, they had to go and see. "Are you feeling alright, Hikaru?" Kaoru asked.

Hikaru nodded "Tche. Stupid Neko Neko sempai... trying to poison Haruhi.."

"Maybe.. maybe he actually wasn't? I mean... a lot of weird stuff has been happening between the two of them for a while now... maybe they're friends now?"

"Yeah right, friends. " Oh Haruhi, I hope you enjoy the o-bento box i made for you with all of my heart, and your favorite, spicy tuna and strawberries, and i hope you don't mind me adding in the free ramen coupon, I just want you to know that I really, truly, 100 percent honestly-"

"Why are you being so stubborn?" Haruhi hissed, still standing guard in front of the door. Hikaru and Kaoru stopped in their tracks, not even announcing their arrival.

"Fujioka-san, please stop. You're causing a scene."

"I'm not causing a scene. All I'm doing is-"

"You know what, I think I'm just going to go now. Good day, Fujioka-san." Nekozawa said, turning around. He could feel the burning tears swelling in his eyes.

"Wait a minute!" Haruhi said, calling after him.

"Please, don't follow me."

"Please, don't go!" she said, walking faster. "Sempai!" No response "Sempai!" no response "**_Onii-chan!_**" She yelled.

Everyone froze in both shock, and terror.

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><p><strong>So far so good? <strong>

**It's the first time im updating this series ( that includes the prequel) as a fourteen year old... It's weird... I went back over IKSTHIATYO (you all should name your children that. Every. Single. One of them. ) and never realised what a completely immature 13 year old i was ('_') not that I've changed much, but dang, you guys put up with every singly one of those author's notes? And all of the random crap I seemed to have put in the story? **

**I applaud you all.**

**Hehe... But come on, you all know that you loved the cucumber song.**


	3. Xenomorphic

**"I am not a smart man. But I know what love is." **

**Jk lol I'm forever alone**

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><p>Nekozawa rotated his head back to Haruhi in terror, letting out tiny whimpers. "Wh-wh…wha…?" Haruhi was pale, and almost completely frozen. The hall was nearly silent, apart from the whispers coming from the other students. Both Hikaru and Kaoru's jaws dropped to the floor. No words could explain what the four were feeling.<p>

"Did you hear that? Nekozawa is Haruhi's older brother!" One boy told his friend

"Then why is it that Haruhi had to come here on scholarship?" The other whispered back.

"That's vile! They must have abandoned Haruhi when he was a child!" one girl hissed.

Nekozawa screeched at the top of his lungs- as loud as he does when Hikaru and Kaoru try to "kill" him, grabbing Haruhi by the arm, and sprinting back to the club room; leaving a trail of wind behind him. Everyone gasped at the sudden reaction from the rather quiet upper-classmen.

He sat her down on the tattered couch and slouched in his seat on the table, grabbing handfuls of the synthetic hair from his wig and tapping his foot anxiously. "Not good.. not good Umehito.."

"Sempai- I… I'm sorry… I didn't mean to.."

"No.. no it's fine. I'm sorry I reacted like that… So.. You… you remember everything?"

"I don't really know what-"

"_And they all lived happily ever after. The end."_ _The boy with the dark hood said. "Are you tired yet, Haruhi?" he looked at her.. **Nekozawa looked at her.**_

"_Neveerrr..Nii-chan.." She mumbled, cuddling with Dara-chan. She tried to keep her eyes open, but sleep overpowered her. _

Haruhi dropped herself face down on the couch, grabbing the back of her head. "Go away now.. go away…" She tried rocking herself to calm down. "I'm sorry.. sempai.."

"Fujioka….san?" Nekozawa asked, getting up from the chair. He approached her, very cautiously "Fuji….o..ka…san…" he said much more quietly. "Haruhi?" He said, finally. More tears burned his eyes. Haruhi stopped moving. "Haru..hi…I-" He was interrupted by a rib-crushing hug from Haruhi, who started to sob in his shoulder.

"If-If you knew then you *sniff* sh-shouldn't have av-voided * sniff* me.. How-How come you nev-never even tried to.. tried to…" Her crying became much louder now, and anything she would have tried to say would have been lost inbetween sobs and giants struggles to catch her breath.

"I wonder what's going on in there," One girl asked. " Haruh-kun, Nekozawa-sempai, is everything alright?" She asked, knocking on the door gently.

"Oi, Kasumi. Give them their privacy." A boy groaned.

She rolled her eyes and ignored his comments after that. Suddenly, she started to hear soft crying inside of the room. She put her ear gracefully to the door. "It..It's Haruhi-kun! REEEENNGGEEEEE!" She cried, running back to the cafeteria.

"TOONOOOOO!" Hikaru and Kaoru yelled, running up to the second-year hall. They ran so wild, their arms flailing about, the two of them stumbling so much. They got to the 2-A classroom, and opened the door fiercely. "Tono!" They cried

"What are the two of you doing, causing such a ruckus so early in the afternoon?" Kyouya said blankly, walking past the two of them into the hall.

"Kyouya-sempai, we really need to talk to Tono."

"Tamaki already made his way to the cafeteria, where all 1st years should be right about now." He said again, this time making eye contact

Kaoru and Hikaru's jaws dropped "What! We were just there a few minutes ago?"

"What is so important that it can't wait until the end of the day?"

"Nekozawa-sempai is Haruhi's older brother! We heard her call out "Onii-chan" to him!"

Kyouya turned around, and walked away. "I'm surrounded by idiots." He cursed under his breath. "The two of you, tell me how that goes. I'll be in the courtyard, I think I've lost my appetite."

Hikaru and Kaoru stood there, awestruck. How could there really have been no reaction? They looked at each other, then gasped "Tono!", and began their marathon again. They finally found his in the cafeteria, wooing a few girls.

"..and so, there I was. Of course, I wasn't just going to leave the poor child as he was. Oh no, that would be cruel. I could see true potential in that young boy, and took him on as an apprentice. So you see, girls. The Host Club isn't a place to meet women, it's a place to build character. It's a place to help young fledglings, like Haruhi, find their way. It's a place to.. fall in love." He said charmingly, putting his arm around the shoulder of the girl to his right. The girls around him started squealing in delight, and the lucky girl he was trying to… er… _woo_ began to blush.

"Amazing!"

"Tamaki-sama that was beautiful! I'll be sure to visit the Host Club after school!"

"Tono, we have something extremely serious to talk to you about." Kaoru said, grabbing his arm.

"I'm sorry ladies, this will only take a minute." Hikaru said, grinning nervously; and grabbed the other arm. They pulled him to the side harshly.

"Hikaru, Kaoru. What is so important while I'm in the middle of roman-"

"Nekozawa-sempai is Haruhi's older brother." The two of them told him. Tamaki froze, still smiling, but just stopped moving.

"Tono?" Karou asked. "Tonoooo?" he asked again, poking his side. The two of them continually poked his side, head, arms, back, and neck.

Deep, deep inside of Tamaki's brains, gears were stuck together. They struggled to move, something must have been stuck.

"Tono, why aren't you saying anything? Didn't you hear us?" Hikaru asked

"Nekozawa is Haruhi's older brother!" Kaoru said, a little louder. "Kasumi just hear her crying inside of his clubroom!" Those words echoed through Tamaki's ears.

Nekozawa..

Haruhi...

Onii-san...

Haruhi was crying... Wait, crying? Haruhi was crying!

The gears started to move again. Tamaki ran out of the cafeteria, screaming and crying waterfall tears of rage. "NEEEEEEKOOOOOOZAAAAAAWAAAAAAA!" He roared.

And so, Haruhi had begun to cry into Nekozawa's cloak. He just stood there, not knowing how to respond. He listened to her lecture him through sobs.

Ding.

Ding.

Ding.

BEEP.

Nekozawa let out the most horrifyingly loud screech of a sob, waterfalls and waterfalls of tears shooting out from his eyes. His crying was so fierce that when he tried to talk it sounded as if an insect had stung his lip. "I'm so sorry Haruhi I'll never leave you again I promise-I missed you so much and I could never talk to you because I didn't know how you'd react and I'm just so sorry I swear I didn't know how much you remembered but I promise that I'll be the best damn big bro-"

"HHAAAAAAA!" Tamaki hollered, ramming himself into the club door.

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><p>Have you guys seen thegradualreport's Cinnamon Challenge? oh my goodness he's like lululululuulul and then he's like bleh and it's like omg lawl.<p> 


	4. Awkward

**_This time, I actually have an excuse for such a prolonged delay._ **

**A LOT has happened in my family. The biggest thing is that I moved halfway across the country. If you're in Texas right now, please be my best friend. The other stuff, I'm not going to talk about. **

**Upside to this move? Going to effing start ASL 1 this year. So pumped. Can't wait to learn a new language. Downside to the upside? Going to effing start ASL 1 this year. Freakishly nervous. It's a freaking new language.  
><strong>

**Well, enough about me! It's time you found out what happens to the lovely Fox and Feline duo~!**

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><p><em>THE SON HE KEPT A SECRET; LOVE CHILD OF TAKAO NEKOZAWA<em>

Below the headline and a picture of Mr. Nekozawa, was the article.

"The very _nerve_ of those rich bastards! And how dare they put you in the paper without your consent!" Ranka shouted, sending the newspaper flying across the room.

"Otou-san, my name isn't even in the paper. It just says, "

"It's absurd! _I_ was the one that was there when you were born!_ I_ was the one who was there every first day of school! Not this rich guy! Honey, I'm so sorry this happened.. I can't imagine who would get the idea for this in the first place."

"Well.. actually... Otou-san..."

"Oh, dear.. Haruhi, please don't tell me that _you_ told the newspaper this-"

"No! It's not that... I just.. I made a stupid mistake.. it really shouldn't have gone this far though.."

"Oh?"

"It's...it's..."

"Honey, if the press has gone into it, it's serious. I need to know, Haruhi."

"I called one of my sempai's "Onii-san". Things got really, really out of hand after that because he dragged me into his club room after this big scene started. People think that I'm his long-lost younger brother now. It's funny, I really like the new nicknames they've given me." Haruhi said the last part sarcasticly. "The Brunnette Outcast, the Brown-Eyed Beast."

"I'm so sorry baby. I'm so dissappointed in the children there, starting drama over something so trivial. You mean to tell me... that a simple greeting between two friends such as "Onii-chan" can't even be used? This is an insult to my culture." Ranka sighed. He pulled Haruhi in for a hug, letting her rest her head on his chest. "Honey, you didn't do anything wrong."

_I'm not so sure about that. _Haruhi thought.

* * *

><p>"Sweetheart, I swear I never-!" Takao tried to calm his wife down, as she threw every object that she could grab at him. Their son flinched at the sound of every crash that his mother made. "Dominika, I have always been faithful to you!"<p>

"LIAR! SCUM OF THE EARTH! BETRAYER OF LOVE!" His wife screeched. "HOW COULD YOU? HOW _DARE_ YOU! WHAT WILL KIRIMI THINK OF YOU? WHAT WILL UMEHITO THINK OF YOU?"

_I'm sorry Otou-san... I'm sorry Mama... _Umehito thought, crying on the inside. He knocked on the door to his father's study, "May I please come in before someone gets killed?"

His mother sighed and lit a few candles, then dimmed the lights. "You may come in, Umehito." He opened the door slowly.

"I made a mistake. Please don't be mad at Otou-san."

Takao nearly passed out from relief, but Umehito's mother stared her son down. "Umehito, what did you do?"

"I...I can't tell you..but none of this is Otou-san's fault. He would never... ever have an affair. Haruhi is my dear friend.. He's not my or Kirimi's half-brother, and not your step-child."

"Is it really so serious that you can't even tell your own mother?"

"I'll take care of it, Mama. Everything will be fine."

"Ume-"

"I will_ take care_ of it. I'll take care of everything." Nekozawa turned around and walked out of the room, rather irritated.

"Well then, only one thing left to do. Takao." She said, turning towards her husband. "I'm sorry."

* * *

><p>"Oka-san." Haruhi said, lighting the incence in front of her mother's shrine. "Are you feeling well today?" She asked. "Today was another stressful day at school." She sighed. "This is all my fault though..." She laid down on her back, her head facing the shrine. "The high-class and rich are a close-knit and community, they say. Pfft. Then people would have known if something like this happened already." She looked at the little bumps on the ceiling, and the places on the legs of the table where the polish had wore off and were scratched.<p>

"I was a toddler. Twice." She said. She never really thought about how absurd it all was. She never just sat down, and though, how incredibly ridiculous it sounded. Magic was real. Or at least, Nekozawa-sempai was extremely talented in the art of trickery and mischief. At the begining, Haruhi had settled with believing with the latter. After spending a lot of time with Nekozawa, however, she had seen what he could do. She had seen things that were unimaginable. She had experienced things that were unimaginable.

Haruhi stayed on her back, but scooted herself so she was under the table. She stared at the picture that she had taped under there. A woman with ebony-black hair and delicate features, a man with reddish hair and slightly angular features, and a small child with long ebony-black hair. The child was holding a very fat cat, the family was standing in what appeared to be a living room.

She began to think about what little of her old life she could remember. She didn't understand why her father didn't move them back to Hokkaido after her mother died. Witness Protection wasn't her best sub-category of the criminal justice system. Maybe he didn't really have a choice.

"_Kaa-san, I wanna go back home."  
><em>

_"Honey, we are home." Kotoko said, kissing her daughter on the cheek.  
><em>

_"No we're not." Haruhi said, pouting.  
><em>

_"You're going to hurt your face if you pout so hard." Ryouji said, throwing his baby girl up in the air. "Smile for daddy, please?"  
><em>

_"Where's Ichira."  
><em>

_"Haruhi-chan." Ryouji said, setting her down on the table. "We're talked about this before. Ichira-chan was very sick and-" he saw Haruhi tearing up "-and.. isn't with us anymore."  
><em>

_Haruhi began to have a temper tantrum. "I want my Ichira and I want my house back and I want my face back too!"  
><em>

_Ryouji scooped up the wailing Haruhi and bounced her up and down, singing to her until she fell asleep.  
><em>

* * *

><p>"Poor Haruhi.. abandoned by his father.."<p>

"Kanako, you shouldn't trust that printing company! They're the Fox News of the printed world!"

"Yeah, but what if it is real? Think about it, how did Haruhi get into this school?"

"Oh my god, you're right!"

Haruhi's walk began to rise in speed, and her steps showed just how frustrated she was. They didn't even bother whispering anymore. She felt like something on display, for the amusement of the people watching. She clutched her bag close to her body, her walk turning into a run.

"Sempai!" She said, once inside of the Black Magic Clubroom "Sempai, are you here yet?" She put the curtain that was used in place of the door on the hook. Nekozawa was very particular about his club, and only a door worthy of his practice would suffice, so hadn't yet picked on out yet. Tamaki had to pay for it, since he broke it, so he had to make sure that it was a fine, fine door indeed.

"I-I'm here."

"Oh..?" She asked, stepping hesitantly into the room where he was. He turned around and smiled anxiously at her.

"You don't have to be so formal. How could things get any worse out there?" By "out there" Haruhi assumed that he meant with the students. She smiled at him and ran to give him a hug.

"Seriously though, how was your day?"

"The same."

Haruhi stroked the side of Beelzenef's face "And how are you today, cutie?"

{Oh stop it, you}

"He's shy." Nekozawa said. "Are you ready?"

"Really? Today?" Haruhi asked excitedly "Wait.. what happened? Why did you change your mind?"

"Really, can't I just be nice?" Nekozawa asked.

"Before you said that you weren't going to fix Dara-chan, and now-"

"Well, things have changed now."

{Yeah, you want her to have as much fun with you as she can before you -pfft- with her and your memories.}

"Shut it, you!" Nekozawa told Beelzenef. Haruhi stared at the two of them confusedly. "Ehehe. Do you have him?"

Haruhi handed Dara to Nekozawa. She watched in amazement as he brought her dear friend back to life. It was exactly the same as before. Nekozawa chuckled. She even had on that cute expression that she did when she was three- wait, did he think it was cute? He blushed, and handed her Dara-chan. Slowly, she put him on her hand, but she was shaking.

"D...Dara-chan?"

{Took you long enough, squirt. Where the hell have you been? I've been waiting for you.}

"Oh my god this is so weird but it's so awesome!" She said. It was weird, she was basically hugging her own hand. "Dara-chan, I missed you so much!"

Nekozawa smiled at the scene, it was too adorable not to.

After Haruhi and Dara's little reunion, Haruhi had to rush to Host Club. But, as soon as she opened the curtain to the hall, she noticed that the entire entry way was plastered with the newspaper clippings.

"Isn't this vandalism?" she asked, trying to peel off the clippings. She looked at her watch and ran back to the 3rd Music Room.

"Haruhi~!" Tamaki cried, glomping Haruhi. "Really, why are you always late?"

"Stop being do dumb, Tono, she was obviously spending time with Nekozawa." Hikaru spat. His words were unusually poisonous.

"It just so happens that we actually had to talk about something." Haruhi said, ignoring the rudeness in his tone and focusing more on what he said.

"I'm glad that you two can be such good friends considering all of the heat coming from that article!" Honey said cheerfully.

"I think that now we all know where Akira Komatsuzawa gets his idea of "popularity by gossip" from. His family runs that paper." Kyouya said, looking through pages in his folder.

"Well, it doesn't matter to me. Students can say what they want, they're only making fools of themselves."

"Haruhi!" Tamaki whined "Why don't you get it! Daddy doesn't like all of these mean kids saying nasty things about his little girl! Why can't you just stop seeing that villainous Nekozawa?"

"Villainous? Sempai, you barely even know him!" Haruhi said, starting the tea for the guests.

"Haruhi, he's a Black Magic Practicioneer!" Kaoru exclaimed "That's just a bit shady, don't you think?"

"Buuut," Honey interupted "you guys wouldn't be saying anything if he was just a _regular _magician, right? And, and, adding "black" to anything doesn't make it bad! It's just a different form is all! Sometimes, maybe a different style, like in this case, "black" , it makes it better!"

"Wow, that was pretty thoughtful, Honey-sempai." Hikaru said

"Take cake for example!"

"And, we lost him."

"See, broccoli is commonly described as a "tree" right, and a bunch of trees is a forest. But nobody likes a bunch of broccoli, so who the heck would like a Forest Cake? That just sounds nasty. But, when you add "Black" to it, "Black Forest Cake", you get something so sweet and nice that you would never think that it was-"

Mori stopped him from talking by putting a spoonful of the Coconut Creme Cake into his mouth. Honey went back to devouring his deliciousness enriched prey. Mori looked at Haruhi and the rest of the club members.

"They day that you become Haruhi, you will have a say." Is all he said, before going back to attending to his cousin.

Haruhi blushed. "Er, thanks, sempai."

Hikaru frowned at the sudden change of color in Haruhi's face, his eyes changing focus points back and forth from Mori and Haruhi.

* * *

><p><strong>Did I make a good comeback from a 4-month vacation from this story? <strong>


	5. Nostalgia

**{Chapter contains profanity}  
><strong>

* * *

><p>"Ranka, you have to admit it was <em>kind of<em> comical." said Ryou, a fellow bartender. The two of them were getting bottles ready, preparing for the herd of customers lined up outside.

"You aren't a parent, Ryou. I can't exactly feel the same way that you do." Ranka sighed, straightening out the arrangement of the alcohol.

"You just have to loosen up. Haruhi's over it, no?"

"I won't rest until I see a formal apology from the Editor-in-Chief of that godforsaken paper. I won't rest until I see a formal, _public _apology from the cretins that made my entire family, neighborhood, and many of my friends doubt Kotoko's fidelity." Ryou left the conversation at that. Ranka never, ever talked about his late-wife since the funeral. Her death left a scar that put him in agony whenever provoked. However, Ranka didn't feel like quite letting go.

"I was so scared, when I first saw the paper. I thought, 'What if Haruhi wants to be with her real father? What if Haruhi won't love me anymore?' " Ranka's eyes glistened. "Then, I thought, 'You idiot. How could you doubt that this is your child? _You _were the one who tasted all of her trials at cooking. _You_ were the one who put Band-aids on her knees whenever she got scraped, and _you_ were the one who held her hand at her mother's funeral. Not this _schmuck_."

"Ranka," Ryou said, giving Ranka a tight hug, "You are phenomenal. A single parent, working day and night to support your family, making sure Haruhi is as happy as possible, and the one you think about when your parenthood is doubted is your daughter."

"Hey, you don't have to remind me about the "single" part, do you want me to cry?" Ranka asked, frowning. Ryou blushed, then went back to work. "I'm going to make sure that this doesn't go unpunished, this insult to my family."

_My poor baby, she's already gone through so much. _Ranka thought.

Haruhi's neighbors were beginning to think that she was crazy. With the thin walls that separated every apartment, they could always hear her when she was having a conversation with Dara. It wouldn't have bothered them so much if they could hear that Haruhi was not babbling to herself, but that she had company. She and Dara had tons of catching up to do. She wanted to know everything, even the things that she wouldn't normally be interested in, like gossip.

She found out that students and teachers used the storage room for romance, illegal substance use, and even- to Haruhi's dismay- as a place where many would spend lots of time just sobbing.

{I see. So those people weren't your biological family.} Dara said. {Nekozawa-san must have messed up big time for such chaos to have ensued.}

"It all ended up fine, I guess." Haruhi told him. "Say, Dara?"

{Yes?}

"12 years sure changed you."

{No, Haruhi. You are the one who has changed.} Dara laughed. {See, as an object under a spell to be used as a companion, I am merely an extension of your true state of mind. When you were younger and more energetic, so was I. When you are feeling doubtful, but aren't able to admit it, I will guide you.}

"Then when are we having a conversation? Why don't you just read my mind?" Haruhi snorted, rolling her eyes.

{I'm not actually you, stupid.}

"I still can't believe it." Haruhi said, leaning back. "Magic is real. How do you even know all of this?"

{Nekozawa has magic blood and it was his magic and knowledge that created me.}

"So Nekozawa-sempai is... your father."

{Does that bother you?}

"No...no, but..It's always the quiet ones." Haruhi cooed. "They always have some crazy background."

Dara didn't even dare say "kind of like you" because he knew that would upset Haruhi to no end. The fact that she and her father were in the witness protection program was not often brought up, but this time was different.

"I still don't feel very safe, you know." Haruhi said. "It's a...horrible thing to say... But I wish that they were put on death row. I just wish all of their alliances outside would drop dead, so we wouldn't have to hide anymore."

{There's no point in rejecting the way that things turned out. This is your life now, Haruhi. Those men are trapped till they die, you are here.}

"Haruhi, huh."

{You would prefer it if I called you-}

"No. I can't dwell on it, and let it consume me. Haruhi is who I am, that's my name.. Fujioka, Haruhi."

For the first time in years, that name coming out of her mouth felt warped, unnatural, and bizarre. "Fujioka, Haruhi." She said again, blankly. "Excuse me, I need a moment." She said, taking Dara off of her hand. She went to the bathroom, leaned over the sink, and stared into the mirror. "Fu-jio-ka," she said. "Ha-ruhi." She felt nothing, yet she felt like a fool. It seemed like the only thing that belonged to her was her face.

Her parents pleaded and pleaded with the doctors not to change her face. Eventually, they gave in. They were poorly funded, other families needed to be helped, they couldn't cope with Haruhi's tantrums to keep her face for the rest of her life, so they gave her a prosthetic face mask. They were ashamed, and kept it quiet. Until all of the allies of the criminals were in jail, the family was kept on particularly close watch.

She touched her cheeks, her lips, her nose. "Ha...ha...ha...ru.h.." She syllables were forced out her now-dry throat. "Dammit," she said, along with a few more colourful curses. "Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit!" She banged the sink, and looked back in the mirror. Trying to say her own name was like trying to swallow needles. Each sound her mouth made was painful and unnatural. "Tch. No point." she said before she went back to the living room to sulk.

"If you don't stop changing your mind every time I ask you for advice, I'm going to have a fit." Nekozawa hissed, furious with his puppet friend.

{What can I do? What I want is what you really want.} Beelzenef said indifferently. {One day you know what you're doing is a bad idea, the next you've convinced yourself otherwise. You're a very unstable person.}

"Unstable you say?" Nekozawa said, touching the melted wax dripping down the candle delicately. The wax instantly hardened when it came into contact with his skin. "I suppose you're right. But what can _I _do about that? Put myself under a spell to numb my heart?" He snorted.

{Your magic has gone haywire in the past few months. You need to detach yourself a little bit, Umehito. Stop focusing on that new spell you're working on. It sounds crazy just coming out of my mouth, but why not enjoy what little time you have left with Haruhi?}

"The sooner this all ends, the better. The sooner all of this pain goes away, the better."

{Pain?}

"I want to be with her. I want to cherish her and make sure she is taken care of forever.}

{You love her?}

"Why does love have to be romantic?!" Nekozawa bellowed. He threw Beelzenef onto his dresser. "Haruhi is my sister! You know nothing about love, yet you _dare _say that I...I..."

_"Onii-chan," she said, clutching Nekozawa's shoulders tightly as he gave her a piggy back ride around the school. Today would be the day. The real Haruhi would come back, this one would be gone. "You're crying."_

_"I am not." He said, adjusting a bit so she wouldn't fall.  
><em>

_"You aaaaare." Haruhi whined, tugging on his wig. "Why are you crying?"_

_"I'm not." He said, his throat was clenched painfully. "I'm not crying."_

_"You are though!"  
><em>

_"Haruhi! Shut up! I'm not crying!" he growled at her, fuming. His glare was soul-crushing to her.  
><em>

_Haruhi's lips quivered, her shoulders trembled. She began to wail on Nekozawa's back, and buried her head in his neck. Nekozawa's eyes widened, at first he couldn't believe took her off of his back and held her tightly, rocking her up and down. "No, Haruhi, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to get so angry with you, I'm so sorry." She continued to wail "Shh, shh, it's okay." He cooed. He was too tired to even try to make his way back to the clubroom. Haruhi was small and energetic, it was a bittersweet pain trying to spend time with her. He wondered if his parents felt like this while raising him. He cradled her in his arms, "I'll stop crying if you stop."  
><em>

_She looked at him, and pouted. "Pinky swear," she said, eyeing him like a hawk. He held up his pinky, twisting it around her gently.  
><em>

_"How did you become such a rock at 15?" He asked quietly, leaning against the wall. He let Haruhi play with locks of hair from his wig.  
><em>

_"How do people become rocks, Onii-chan?" She asked.  
><em>

_"No, not the rocks outside. Becoming a rock means.. you're unemotional," he said, then smirked, "Not a little crybaby like you."  
><em>

_Haruhi's lip quivered again, but she regained a little bit of her composure. "Am not." The two of them had a "glaring contest" before Nekozawa grinned and prodded her side, receiving an uplifting giggle in return.  
><em>

_"Really, Haruhi, you have to stop being a crybaby." He said. Haruhi was play-punching the palm of his hand with her angry face on, "Imagine all of the people who will make fun of you." He said, wiping away the tear that was still around her eye.  
><em>

_"Otou-san and Okaa-san said it's good to cry." She huffed.  
><em>

_"Not all of the time, it's not."  
><em>

_"Then when is it good to cry?"  
><em>

_"When you feel like you're going to burst."  
><em>

_"Burst?"  
><em>

_"When your throat starts to hurt," he said, pressing his middle and index finger to her throat gently. "When your cheeks start to burn," he poked her face. "When you feel dizzy and your heart beats quickly."  
><em>

_"Then, are you sick?" She asked, feeling his forehead. "You should go to the doctor."  
><em>

_"I'm just getting ready to... mourn, in a sense."  
><em>

_"Mourn?"  
><em>

_"It's a big-girl word." He said, "You'll learn what it means late...r..." He said before realizing how cruel his words really were, even if Haruhi didn't. standing and lifting her up. "I'm taking you back to the music room now, I have something I have to do." _

_"Onii-chan?"  
><em>

_"What?"  
><em>

_"I'm sorry your throat hurts. Feel better." She said, and kissed his cheek. "I love you."_

_He nuzzled her, and said, "You can come to me whenever you feel like you're going to cry." He couldn't stop the words from coming out of his mouth, he tried not to make this day harder than it would've been- was. He failed.  
><em>

{The fool doesn't even know what's going on inside of his head.} Beelzenef laughed to himself. {I'm glad that I'm a 1st rate Companion, not a 2nd, like Dara. Lord knows how insane I would be if I had Umehito's mind. Dara's lucky, being blessed with the intelligence of Haruhi-san.} Beelzenef listened to Nekozawa scream into his pillow, and genuinely pitied his friend. {He's so lonely, even when his dear Haruhi returned to him.}

* * *

><p><strong>The Day After<strong>

"Fujioka-sempai!" Haruhi heard the voice of a vaguely familiar younger boy running towards her. Her arms full of groceries, she tried turning her body without tipping over. "Fujioka-sempai, it's me, Takashi's younger brother!" he said.

"Ahh, you're Satoshi-san right? It's nice to see you again. I would shake your hand, but as you can see..."

"Here, let me." He said, taking a few of the bags from her. "Wow, you sure did a lot of shopping today."

"Thank you, you must be very strong to be able to carry them." She laughed. "W-was there something I could help you with, Morinozuka-san?"

"Well, actually, there is. See, i'm.. _struggling _with a few of my courses and I don't want to shame Takashi Nii-san by getting kicked out of Kendo club.. I was wondering if you'd be able to-"

"Honestly, I would be glad to, but wouldn't your parents rather you use the guidance of a licensed tutor?"

"The problem is... my parents don't know... I don't want them to make me quite Kendo to focus more on studies."

Haruhi stifled a laugh, " Okay, I'll help you, Morinozuka-san. But first, could you help me carry these to the Host Club?"

"No problem, Fujioka-sempai." He said, nodding seriously. The two of them made small talk all the way back to the building.

"...and that's when Takashi Onii-san _flipped him over his back and threw him on the ground." _Satoshi said triumphantly.

"You're very proud of Mori-sempai, aren't you?" She asked. Martial arts generally bored her, but Satoshi weaved a tale so beautifully articulated about his older brother that she couldn't help but listen.

"Who wouldn't be? He's fantastic." He said, raising his fist in the air. The contest of the bag almost hit him in the face, causing him to blush deeply.

"He really is, " she said, her own face a delicate pinkish hue. "Having someone to look after you like that your whole life is an enviable experience."

"Hey, he's not perfect, ya know." He scoffed, "He drinks the soup from his ramen _first." _He said.

"No," she shook her head. "Just the fact that there is someone watching over you. Protecting you."

"Ahh, you're an only child, right? Trust me, you're not missing much."

"I guess." She shrugged.

Satoshi thought that Haruhi was very strange. She spoke formally and timidly, like she was intimidated by everything. Well, she was a middle-class student in the midst of a bunch of aristocrats. She didn't know about Martial Arts, sports, or any real guy stuff. She was plain. He boiled it down to her just being a book worm; a nerdy, asocial pipsqueak who talked like a girl. He thought that if it wasn't for her looks, she would never find a girlfriend. _Maybe he's gay. No girl wants a weakling, _he thought.

Haruhi thought that Satoshi was, on a scale of 1- Tamaki, slightly obnoxious. Nothing like his brother, he must have gotten ridiculed for that a lot. His hair is gelled, unlike Mori's; he must've been trying to copy his natural hairstyle to gain respect. He tried to speak like a thug, but his privileged education gets the better of him and he speaks eloquently most of the time. It was obvious he looked down on her, even if he tried to hide it, but she didn't care.

* * *

><p>"Tadashi, I swear to god, if don't stop tapping your damn fingers on the table.." Isamu growled. Tadashi stopped, rolling his eyes at his grouchy friend. They were the only two at their lunch table. The guards kept close watch on them. Two close people in prison could do more damage than a person would think. "Damn this place."<p>

"You say that everyday. If I wasn't here, you'd have bashed your head in the door just to annoy the people who clean."

"I miss not having to take a piss in front of four other guys. I just want to go the fuck outside."

"Man, you're just sexually frustrated. You haven't gotten laid in 12 years."

"I'll be damned if one of these fuckers tries to touch me. When I get out, the first thing I'm doing is getting a hooker. No, 2 hookers. No... four. Each one with huge-"

"Wouldn't it just be easier and cheaper to contract an S.T.D here?"

Isamu glared at him. "I hate it here."

"You're just a fucking special snowflake." Tadashi grunted, shoving the bread into his mouth.

"I'll kill that damn man. I kill his wife too. The brat can live. Tell the world what kind of horror I can dish out." Isamu said, glaring at his food. "I'll make sure she screams real good, just for good measure." He whispered that last part. These were hardened criminals, but pedophiles were at the bottom of the food chain here.

"I'll_ skin_ you if you do. And shut up before someone hears you!" Tadashi said, furious. "Don't make anyone else here think I'm as sick as you."

"12 years in prison has turned you soft."

"12 years in prison hasn't changed me, or my morals. I'll kill you before you rape _anyone_." Isamu didn't take much offense from it. Tadashi wouldn't change his position if he was being tortured, and he's been tortured for many other things before. He was stubborn like that.

"Fine, nothing vulgar, you cunt."

"You're not even getting out of here." Tadashi grumbled, cracking his knuckles. The letters "P-A-I-N" were tattooed on each one except for the thumbs. He had plenty of other tattoos he got at the prison, too many to count. Isamu had a lower tolerance for pain, his only tattoo was a word on his back written in some kind of Celtic script.

"We'll see about that. We'll see."

* * *

><p><strong>Also, if any of you are ever planning to read the Demonata series by the magnificent god who is Darren Shan, <em>Bec <em>will make you go "eeeewwwwww" more than the movie Splice will. Possibly, possibly not. I thought that the book was pretty disgusting though, but many people I know who read it weren't (too) bothered by it. However, as we all know I have the maturity of a six year old- proven by chapter two of "I kinda sorta turned her into a three year old" :/ (I re-read that godforsaken chapter and was at a loss for word. "Random humming noise" what the hell was I thinking with that stupid "random humming noise")  
><strong>

**Darren Shan though. The sound of his name _just makes me happy, ok? _ **


	6. Dacryphilia

**The highlight of my summer was getting to hear my mom call our neighbor a fucker in her thick-ass accent. I'm kind of excited for the new school year to start because I-**

_**Holy fuck I haven't done any SAT Prep**_

* * *

><p>Kaoru found Hikaru in front of the bathroom mirror, staring intensely at two bottles. "Picking a new hair product?" He asked. Hikaru did not look up.<p>

"This is sunblock, and this is self-tan."

"Skin cancer, or not skin cancer. That is the question." Kaoru chuckled. When Hikaru didn't laugh back, he sat down on the bathroom counter, looking at his brother with his signature gentle smile. "What's on your mind?"

"I have to pick one."

"Obviously."

"Within one of these two bottles holds the key to my fate."

"I think it just holds the answer to what skin pigment you want for the next month."

"Everyday, after cleaning up the dishes and everything. For every hour she spends hosting, she's with Nekozawa-sempai for one."

"I know, it's weird."

"But why does she stare at Mori-sempai all the time?"

"I don't know. Maybe they're lovers." Hikaru glared at him and Kaoru just shrugged. "Would that bother-"

"Let's all go to the amusement park."

"Okay."

"A huge amusement park. Huge. With huge, violent rides."

"When do you want to go?"

"Tomorrow."

"It's going to be in the high 90's! Are you crazy?!"

"They have a water park."

"They're going to have a high number of people who get heat stroke."

"Please, Kaoru? It's really important that we go _tomorrow." _

"You want us to shrivel up and die in the heat?"

"We'll just take a shit ton of water with us! Honestly, forget I even said anything. I don't want to go if you're just going to complain the whole time that me and Haruhi are trying to have fun."

"What about Tono?"

"I don't have to include him in my daily life." Hikaru frowned, Kaoru continued smiling.

"And Kyouya-sempai?"

"He wouldn't come."

"Got it. You can carry the cooler around because I don't want to bring a butler with us to the park."

Hikaru looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Now you want to go?"

"Oh yeah, wouldn't want to be a downer on you and Haruhi trying to have fun together. Might as well be enthusiastic about it. And we're going to need to buy tickets."

"Yeah, I can handle that! And then, we can go to those photo booths and buy three strips, one for each of us!"

"Hikaru, why is it soo important that we go tomorrow and not on some other day."

"..It'll be nice and sunny tomorrow."

"Nice isn't how I would describe it."

"Well, it _will_ be nice because Nekozawa-sempai won't be there to _ruin_ everything."

"To ruin you and Haruhi having fun."

"Yeah."

"..And Mori-sempai wouldn't either because Hani-sempai doesn't like violent rides."

"Right."

"... just like Haruhi."

"Come again?"

"Haruhi doesn't like those sky-high rides." Kaoru said nonchalantly. Hikaru just stared at his reflection in the mirror with a blank, bored face. Kaoru looked quite happy with himself. Hikaru opened the bottle of self-tan, squeezed a good dollop onto his hand, and then, _splat. _

"Hey! What was that for! Now I'm going to have this huge brown spot on my face! What if this makes me break out?!" Kaoru yelled at Hikaru. rushing to wash it off of his face. Hikaru had already left the bathroom quickly and quietly.

"I hope you get acne scars." Hikaru mumbled.

Nekozawa had learned to enjoy the time that he had with Haruhi, instead of seeing it as nothing more than stalling for when he was going to erase both of their memories. He realized that he had to compartmentalize his life, and he did exactly that. Of course, he still spent a lot of his time researching and studying, creating a fool-proof plan- which he failed to do the last two times. After he began to loosen up around Haruhi, the strain that had been put on their relationship seemed to dissolve.

"And then, he told _me _that I know nothing of the "real world" and what it takes to "succeed". Haruhi said, slightly angry. "Can you imagine that? Here I am, trying to tutor this kid who's so unorganized that he doesn't even bother to try to keep track of his assignments, and when I try to lecture him on his study habits he goes and insults me. So then I-"

Nekozawa didn't look up from his book when he spoke. "Then drop it. It's not your problem if the Morinozuka clan doesn't know how to raise more than one child."

"But he needs me, Nii-chan, he really wants to be respected by Mori-sempai. And he always pays for food, I can't just turn him down."

"Selling yourself out for material goods." Nekozawa hissed mockingly. "Who are you and what have you done with Haruhi?!"

"Nii-chan," Haruhi said, her smile twitching a bit, "I didn't get to the part where I politely told him that Mori-sempai would never speak to someone like that."

"That's cold. That's.. that's really cold." Nekozawa laughed. "You played the inferiority-complex card. But if he does bother you again, would you like me to make his hair fall out? I'll bet he's vain."

"Don't do that. He takes pride in his appearance, but that's because he just looks so much like Mori-sempai." Haruhi said, smiling and blushing. "As weird as it feels to say it, taking his looks away from him might be devastating, and I don't want to do that to him."

"You just like looking at a mirror image of the Wild type everyday."

"What are you saying?!"

"That you like 'em tall, dark, and handsome. Perhaps you'd like to purchase a love potion?" Nekozawa sneered

"Why should I have to pay? I thought we were close." Haruhi joked back.

Nekozawa thought for a minute. "Buy one, get one half-off."

"Wow," Haruhi chuckled ".. love potions don't make sense, but I can see how the false blanket of affection is an attractive prospect. Even though it's not real, it must be nice." She knew that Nekozawa was joking, that he really didn't like it when those kids wouldn't be honest with themselves and he had multiple orders for love potions during Valentine's day. He probably would have been disappointed in Haruhi for asking. Still, the thought of tall, dark, and handsome finally seeing her as something more than an underclassmen made her face burn with a feeling she didn't quite know how to define. Then, a new thought raced through her mind, one she didn't have the nerve to ask before.

"Nii-chan," Haruhi asked. Nekozawa looked up at her from his research. "Now that I've found out that... You know, magic is real... I was wondering..." He went wild eyed, and slammed his hands on the table with the force of his entire body. Haruhi jumped in her seat.

"Don't say another word!" His voice boomed. "Do you think I'm stupid?" Haruhi was at a loss for words. "You think I haven't been expecting this? Waiting for it, like a predator waits for prey?! I don't need you to tell me, like I don't know what you're going to ask!" Haruhi was standing behind her chair now, holding it as a shield. "You... You..." Nekozawa put his head down, his entire body shaking. He quickly reached into the drawer of his desk and pulled out Haruhi's old black cloak, holding it in the air valiantly. "You make Onii-chan so proud!" His eyes were shimmering with a war-like glory.

"Huh?"

"The brother and sister duo, back together! Nekozawa, Umehito and his Black Magic Apprentice Fujioka, Haruhi!" Nekozawa gave her the classic anime thumbs up and grin.

_'Nii-chan, I just wanted you to finally tell me the story of how exactly this whole mess started._' Haruhi thought, but Nekozawa seemed too ecstatic to stop.

"I've kept this, this whole time, not even knowing if it would be of any use, but I couldn't just let it be a prop in some play. But now, all I have to do is modify it and it'll fit you fine! With a nice border, and maybe a pocket?" Nekozawa sang to himself as he dug up the old sewing machine and began working diligently. The sight of him in his dark and dreary cloak frantically running around the room and bobbing his head happily at the sewing machine made Haruhi laugh. Even Beelzenef helped with the sewing, tugging on the fabric when Nekozawa needed it. "Maybe she'll even start bringing Dara to school."

"Onii-chan?"

"Yes?" He chirped

"You ever say something so many times, it loses it's meaning?"

"Of course. That's the problem with any language. Its's just a bunch of abstract things that are put in neat, individualized compartments to describe both abstract and concrete things. I mean, how does the word 'lion' really describe ferocity, magnificence, golden fur, and paws? Luh. Luh-Eye-On. Lion. Rawr. King of the jungle."

"Have you ever said a name so many times that it just became... A word?"

Nekozawa stopped sewing. "What are you talking about?"

"Fujioka, Haruhi."

"It's a beautiful, beautiful name."

"Fu-ji-o-ka-ha-ru-hi." She said with more force.

"I don't like where this is going."

"It's a simple conversation."

"It's a beautiful name. I think it suits you very well."

"It's not mine_._"

"It's not safe for you to start using your birth name,_ someone_ will hear, _someone_ will know,_ someone_ will find you."

Haruhi tried her very best to stay calm "Everytime I hear someone say it I just want to rip their lips off and make them scream out-"

"Isn't violence what got you into this mess, Ha- er..."

{A+ save.} Beelzenef commented {I'm sure she had no idea what you were talking about.}

Nekozawa walked around to face her, told her to look up at her, and said "First, I will start. Then, you'll beg and beg your father to start calling you by that name too. Then, when nothing happens to you, you'll get more comfortable with it, and insist on all of your Host Club friends to start, and of course they will force you to tell them about your past. Eventually, the whole school will know. Someone will hear it on the street "Did you know that name-redacted is really a girl and had a run in with a huge criminal when she was young?" The information will somehow travel back to those two men. Those two, sick, twisted, perverted, horrible men, and they will come. Please, don't risk your father's safety. Don't take your parents' sacrifice for granted." Haruhi's throat tightened up, hurting. She started smiling.

"I'm being foolish. Millions of people go through this. I'm being stupid, and foolish."

"No, you're not H-... no you're not."

"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?"

"More like a fox." He said, ruffling her hair. "Now be a good sport and try on the cloak so I can see how much I have to hem it." His tone was menacing.

"What am I? Some kind of mannequin for all of you rich people?"

"Hey, you are 50% rich person, Little Ms. Lovechild._ One of us._ " He said as she stood up and put the cloak around her. He helped her adjust it and took measurements. "Are you busy tomorrow?"

"Hikaru and Kaoru said they wanted to go to the zoo tomorrow."

"The... the zoo.."

"I'm sorry, I would've asked if you could come along but because of your condition I didn't think you'd appreciate it. And I couldn't cancel on them, they've been whining about how I haven't been spending any time with them."

Nekozawa laughed. "Because you've been spending it with me." Haruhi nodded. "Don't look so apologetic. You shouldn't spend your youth with an old fart like me."

"You're not an old fart."

"I am, indeed an old fart. I never go outside, I read old books, I complain when people are too loud."

"Stop being so hard on yourself, you old fart."

"I didn't know you read the paper." Tadashi said simply. "What? Did they suddenly add a porn section?"

"This stuff is trash. That billionaire, Nekozawa Takao, you know he has a lovechild?"

"Figures."

"Who cares if his wife is ugly and he was horny?"

"Lots of people, apparently."

"Ain't nothing wrong with a little bump n' grind."

"Amen."

"I have a lovechild. Where's my frontpage cover?"

"You have a wanted advertisement. That's good enough, right?"

"It says the wife's picture is on the next page." Isamu turned the newspaper around, and then let out a whistle. "Hello, _Sputnik_." He said with a very bad accent. "What's this? It's a picture of the kid. No name, must be a minor. Wait..."

"He looks like a girl." Tadashi laughed. Isamu gripped the newspaper tightly, staring at Haruhi's picture. "What's up with you?"

"He looks like a girl because he is a girl."

"What?"

"Look at how weak the browbone and the mandible are."

"Okay, doctor."

"Mandible means jaw."

"Maybe he's just a weak mandibled guy."

"Oh, this is great, this is wonderful. She looks nothing like Nekozawa."

"So she's not really his kid, who cares?"

Isamu let out a blood chilling grin.

"You have your mother's eyes, doll-face."

* * *

><p><strong>I tried to make this chapter just a little bit more lighthearted than I've been making the previous ones. I don't know if it showed, but I tried and therefore I can't be penalized.<strong>

**I have the ending for the story kind of figured out, but I don't know if I want to post the happy ending or the really sad one. And I get to make the decision. I feel powerful. I feel like a god. ** **I feel like George R. R. Martin. **

_**Kneel before me and beg for mercy. **_


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